Somerset bond proposal merits support

Express-News Editorial Board -

Published
12:00 am CDT, Saturday, May 1, 2010

Somerset Independent School District, in the far southern sector of Bexar County whose boundaries extend into Atascosa County, is asking voters for approval of a $13 million bond proposal to pay for a new junior high school.

The student population in this rural school district has outgrown the existing junior high and more space is needed. Built for 350 students in 1986, it is now housing 540 students on a daily basis.

Somerset ISD voters should support the bond issue.

Estimated cost of the new school is $17 million, but district officials plan to use $10 million in reserve funds in the budget to cover some of the cost of the new school project.

The remaining reserve funds will be used to begin to tackle a long list of projects recommended by a facilities and capital improvements committee after a three-month assessment of the district's needs to better serve its 3,500 students.

The district's low property wealth qualifies it for instructional facilities allotment funding from the state, which means Somerset taxpayers will only have to pay back a small portion of the bonds.

Taxpayers in the district with a home with an appraised value of $70,000 would see a $4.67 monthly increase in their property tax bill.

Voters in Somerset should not sit this one out. Election Day is Saturday, May 8.